There are albums I find just utterly and completely brilliant. Here's five.

Saul Stokes - Zo Pilots

Why do I keep coming back to this album? It moves me in a way I find hard to describe. It's long, long been a favorite of mine. This is back when Saul was essentially recording his music live with his massive home made modular equipment - no multi-tracking. There's a liveness to this... it's so "organic"... it lives and breathes and moves. His special controller that looks a bit like a flute plays a prominent role on this album - and I think that is something special about it too. Outfolding is nearly as good to me... it's almost like part 2 of Zo Pilots. Saul is still brilliant, but, of course, he's changed and evolved and the sound is different. I can easily recommend any of his albums, but this one has stuck with me for some reason - maybe because it's the first one I heard of his. Released on Hypnos

Vidna Obmana (Dirk Serries) - Surreal Sanctuary

The first half of Surreal Sanctuary is jaw dropping, emotionally charged, moving music. In fact - I'm not the only one that thinks this... Lamentation was used in a broadcast commemerating 9/11 on Belgian radio. I forget the whole story - but if I had to pick a track that feels like loss and fit such a horrible event with such touching music... that track would be it. I've listened to those first 4 or 5 tracks so many times. Now, I love the 2nd half of the album - but for sheer utter and complete perfection... that first half. Wow. Also released on Hypnos.

Max Corbacho - Ars Lucis

Ars Lucis is one of those albums that I listen to all the way through and just hit repeat and listen again. I hear so much depth and heartfelt writing in these. Max is frankly, someone who should be getting more attention than he currently does. Breathstream is another album that is similar to Ars Lucis and if you're planning to get one, just get both... :-) Released on ad21music.

Ishq - Orchid

I could point to any of Ishq's albums - or Elve which is another artist name used by Matt Hillier and his wife. Orchid is the first one I heard and the one that pulled me in and never let me go. Whether it's gentle flowing beats and ambient soundscapes... or if the beats are stripped away. Ishq is perfection. Most of the albums are released on Matt's own Virtual World label - Orchid was released on Interchill.

H.U.V.A. Network - Ephemeris

Humorously I wanted to start out with "I could point to any of Ultimae's albums" and then realized it's exactly what I wrote for Ishq... However, it's true! Ultimae is the ultimate in ambient trance soundscape with flowing beats label. I seem to be listening to H.U.V.A. Network - Ephemeris the most. But I play Carbon Based Lifeforms, and Aes Dana, and Solar Fields so often... wow. Wonderful, wonderful label!

I purposely did not mention any albums released on my label, Relaxed Machinery. Trust me, I listen to those a ton!

I plan it to be an ongoing series as part of my kinetoscope five blog. Every so often I'll mention a few others.

It's like when I try to answer top 10 lists or desert (or dessert) island lists... there's always another one that should have made the list. So with these posts I'm just going to talk about albums that have moved me and I think are worth mentioning - whether brand new or quite a few years back.

And 2 are Hypnos releases! Although that was purely unintentional... those two albums always are at the top of my list of "great" albums... if you dig back into old "best" lists - those two are always on there. :-)

Actually the inclusion of 2 Hypnos releases wasn't even why I said what I did. I just wish more people would comment on what they're listening to, rather than just listing artist/title. It makes a big difference in helping people learn about what else they might enjoy.

I love these kinds of lists, too. Outfolding was the first album I bought through Hypnos. I immediately ordered Zo Pilots after hearing Outfolding and then added all of the other Saul Stokes titles available at the time. As I started looking for other similar titles I discovered this forum as a result of these early purchases. I think that was a pretty good move for me.

I had not listened to Zo or Outfolding for a long time until this post encouraged me to give them a spin. Sweet fancy Moses!!!! What great freakin' albums!

They are even better than I remember them. Maybe it's because over the years so much other mediocre electronic music has passed through my old ears. These two recordings have a unique sound that sucks you right into their exotic worlds. They are like a soundtrack for a great unfilmed science fiction movie.

I had not listened to Zo or Outfolding for a long time until this post encouraged me to give them a spin. Sweet fancy Moses!!!! What great freakin' albums!

They are even better than I remember them. Maybe it's because over the years so much other mediocre electronic music has passed through my old ears. These two recordings have a unique sound that sucks you right into their exotic worlds. They are like a soundtrack for a great unfilmed science fiction movie.

A lot of my attraction to those albums is how organically electronic they sound. There's life to the sounds. Life to the playing. Saul's music lives and breathes. He continues to make great albums - he's a very special artist. For me - those two (Zo + Outfolding) hold a special place with me.

It's rare for an artist to have one album that strikes me so much - for an artist to have two...

Listening to Saul's Sleek Nucleus now... it's different, and yet the same... There's a wonderful progression in Saul's work from what he was recording 15+ years ago to today. I do truly believe he's one of the best out there doing electronic music... blending an ambient sensibility with an Orbital like electronic overtone in there... Just love his work.